How much does is take to kick start five arts projects? The answer is $16,500!

A diverse range of artists participating in Metro Arts’ development programs are set to receive dollar-for-dollar matched funding from Creative Partnerships Australia through its program MATCH: Crowdfunding for the Independent Arts Sector – to qualify for this funding they need to raise $16,500 through their individual crowd funding campaigns which will take place online through pozible.

The five projects include three creative developments of new works, an international dance exchange and a repertory season of eight pieces of contemporary theatre. All five projects will run in the second half of this year and will be housed at Metro Arts. Supporters can find the campaigns online at www.pozible.com/collection/detail/86 under the Metro Arts Collection.

Each campaign is offering different rewards for different levels of donations and range from a postcard direct from Eastern Europe in return for a $10 donation, to dinner with one of the city’s best directors for $500. Every little bit counts, so supporters shouldn’t be shy!

Daniel Evans’ (The Good Room) project sees him produce eight plays, that wouldn’t otherwise be seen in Brisbane, directed by eight local directors in a two-week repertory season titled Awkward Conversation. Joining the directorial ranks are those names well known to Brisbane such as Lucas Stibbard, Steven Mitchell Wright and Catarina Hebbard.

In contrast, curator and producer Britt Guy is looking to support the fourth year of the Croatia-Slovenia-Australia Artist Exchange which sees one dance practitioner from Croatia and one from Slovenia join two Australian artists, Jess Devereux and Zaimon Vilmanis, in an international cultural exchange to be housed in Brisbane at Metro Arts and Darwin, as part of Darwin Festival, before heading back to Croatia and then Slovenia.

Hybrid performance maker and director, Genevieve Trace – after premiering Aurelian at Brisbane Festival last year – is raising funds to commence the development of her new performance work, The Lavinia Project, which tells the story of modern femininity in Australian culture in.

Theatre maker Thomas Quirk wants to return to Brisbane to continue the development of The Theory of Everything which sees artists from both Brisbane and Thomas’ new hometown of Melbourne, collaborate to discover the theory of… well everything! With characters such as Einstein, Queen Elizabeth I and Milley Cyrus onstage it should be interesting night in the theatre!

Rounding out the group is early career artist Lucy-Ann Langkilde who has graced Brisbane stages in such productions as Trollope (Queensland Theatre Company, 2013) and The Wizard of Oz (La Boite Theatre, 2013), but now wants to turn her focus to directing with her new work Las Pozas which has been selected as a Shortfuse Residency at Metro Arts.

A multi-artform incubator for independent practice, Metro Arts provides a platform of infrastructure, mentoring, development and producing support, networks and leadership for artists at all stages of practice, while concurrently promoting new and emerging ideas, forms and practices to the market.

In Three: Tap Into Topology, Topology works with rhythmic genius/drum-kit soloist, Grant Collins and tap-dance wizard Bill Simpson to create bold new territory in both music and dance.

Grant pushes all the artists to the edge of rhythmic possibility, never compromising groove, and Bill dances on the precipice, creating new space with his body and resounding shoes.

Three features new original compositions for drums and tap, and Topology’s saxophone, strings and piano.

It’s a fearsomely energetic performance that brings together ideas and inventions from 3 distinct genres to generate something both unfamiliar and intoxicating.

The Visy Theatre stage is stripped back and bare apart from a range of instruments… piano, drum kit, double bass… collectively hinting at the musical array to follow. For that is what Three: Tap Into Topology is about, the merging of discrete genres in exploration of the fluidity of stylistic definitions. And the result is something surprisingly wonderful.

As Brisbane Powerhouse Artists-in-Residence, Topology’s eminence should be of no surprise to Brisbane audiences. Indeed, the group is known for the breadth and depth of its collaborations; the quintet, comprised of strings, saxophone and piano, has created impressive original work over its many years with collaborators such as Geoffrey Rush, Queensland Ballet, Kate Miller-Heidke, Katie Noonan, the Kransky Sisters, to name but a few.

In Three, Topology has come together with drum soloist (and rhythmic genius) Grant Collins and tap-dance master Bill Simpson to create a bold new show that combines music and dance in presentation of both exciting original compositions, such as the memorable Gavin’s Stomach by Bernard Hoey.

The show begins delicately, with the strings adding a haunting quality to early pieces. Before long, the onslaught, as Robert Davidson deems it, begins and Grant Collins shows his stuff with innovative and enthralling drum set compositions, impressively, at one stage, using all four limbs both individually and collectively to match the different time beats of the other instruments. This man’s skill is amazing. But, this performance is made all that more engaging by his charming audience interaction and his obvious passion. And it is wonderful to see some younger audience members playing air drums along with him.

Collins defies stereotypical drum set methodologies, which brings out the full potential of five musicians. This is particularly seen in the re-imagining of Carl Vine’s Piano Conerto No. 1 to include drum collaboration. Indeed, collaboration is the feature of all of the Three numbers. And the show also features Queensland tap-dance wizard Bill Simpson, Artistic Director and choreographer for Red Hot Rhythm, a Gold Coast/Brisbane based dance company. Simpson is a skilled dancer of poise and power, and the synchronicity of his moves with the music swelling in accompaniment is impressive.

As Grant Collins remarked, this is not your Triple M type of music, which is a good thing, as some music has to be seen and not just heard. Three is a show that is everything a show should be: exciting, contemporary, innovative, intelligent and brilliantly achieved. And, as I overheard a departing patron reflect, “It is always good to experience different things.”

Topology’s John Babbage composed the music for Dead Puppet Society’s ARGUS and we have 28 days left to help them reach their pozible.com goal ($1 500) to take ARGUS to IPAY in the USA!

A $50 pledge will reward you with a limited edition print of one of the design sketches for the show AND an original song from ARGUS composed by John Babbage and performed by Topology + an ARGUS badge from the original season. Awesome!

This little comedy with the biggest heart has a cast of 25 performed by one man, a stick of chalk and a sock puppet! It is not a love story, it’s a story about love…and physics…and evolution…and mad magpies…and the stars.

You know The Escapists and you know their hit show boy girl wall. I love it! I reviewed it in 2011…

Boy Girl Wall

The Escapists

30th March-17th April 2011

The Roundhouse Theatre

Conceptual, comical, physical theatre at its best.

It’s really difficult to describe this show but to stop at that would make a very poor review, wouldn’t it? It’s not a love story, as we were told from the outset; it’s a story about love. And inanimate objects. Sure, we meet a boy, a girl, a boss, a publisher, parents, and an Alan Cummings inspired (don’t try to tell me it wasn’t) “ironically gothic” librarian’s assistant and then a wall, a ceiling, a floor, a statue, a computer, two doors and a power box (is that everybody?)… All in a one-man show!

I could mention a whole host of hilarious little anecdotes, involving a bicycle named Penelope and the malicious Magpie of Montague Road, or tell you all about the co-operative matchmaking antics of the wall, the ceiling, the floor and the doors of a couple of West End apartments but that would be glossing over the real magic of this production, which is the storyteller himself.

Lucas Stibbard is the creative genius behind The Escapists, a creative team of “Realisers” (Matthew Ryan, Neridah Waters and Sarah Winter join Stibbard in the production process), working collaboratively to conceptualise and bring to life, truly unique new works. Stibbard’s performance – all seventy-five minutes of it – was dynamic (and the invitation he extended to me, to play a small role at a crucial moment in the play, a very clever and unexpected interactive device)!

Props to La Boite Theatre Company’s Artistic Director, David Berthold, who saw the potential of boy girl wall in its previous incarnation at !Metro Arts in 2010. Going by the buzz of the capacity opening night crowd before and after the show, it appears Berthold made a wise choice.
This show is like taking an illicit substance before class and giggling ’til you think you’ve heard the bell…well, of course I can only imagine that’s what it’s like (it’s a show that is, after all, largely dependent on your imagination). I laughed ’til I had tears streaming down my cheeks and never more so than during an entire minute of sock puppet fellatio that has to be seen to be believed.

This is a truly original, hyper-creative piece that has clearly come from a place that is inaccessible to most of us. The characters and stories within the story are all at once enchanting, horrifying, mortifying and even, at times, endearing. Not without its tender moments, boy girl wall is unique, defying typical form and laughing out loud at traditional theatrical styles. Rather than pushing boundaries, it draws new ones, literally, in white chalk, on a blackboard painted floor and walls constructed from free-standing, old fashioned chalk boards; I remember them from Year 1, when the photocopying came back hot and purple-inked from the office.

This is the simplest of stories, told in the most complex, physically and mentally demanding multi-modal delivery imaginable. This is an Edinburgh Fringe show. This is a small global sensation. This is the little show that could and it is a little gem that mustn’t be missed.

This conference collects the best of the best in works for young people and presents them to potential presenters in the USA, Canada and beyond. This is a phenomenal opportunity for The Escapists to take their work to the world.

Your last chance to see boy girl wall in Brisbane is on Monday December 16 at Brisbane Powerhouse. Tickets on sale on Friday December 7 at 8pm but by contributing to the pozible.com campaign (there are just 10 hours to go!) you avoid the Box Office booking fees!

In this special return season, nationally acclaimed performer/choreographer Brian Lucas holds a mirror up to our age of anxiety, revealing reflections which dazzle and provoke in his newest solo physical theatre work Performance Anxiety. Dance, movement, physical imagery, voice and sound combine to create an intriguing and confronting performance in the Turbine Rehearsal Room from 24 October – 3 November 2012.

Lucas draws on personal experience of the particular anxieties which arise when we find ourselves in front of a live audience , and explores the universal parallels that exist between the experiences of the professional performer and the struggle to “perform well” in our day-to-day lives, be it in the bedroom, the boardroom or the supermarket checkout queue.

As these anxieties infiltrate the performance space, Lucas conjures up characters who usually only exist on the periphery of our consciousness. He allows them to take centre-stage – revealing their inner lives, giving voice to their unspoken fears, hopes, strengths and frailties, and providing an opportunity for them to grab centre stage and shine. Performance Anxiety is the bastard, hybrid child of The United States of Tara and karaoke night in a desolate gin-joint on the periphery of the planet.

Image by Fiona Cullen

We asked Brian to talk about hisPerformance Anxiety.

Brian, can you tell us about Performance Anxiety? How did it come about the first time and what led you to remount it?

The piece began life as the second of two full-length works I created as part of my Australia Council Fellowship (the first being “Underbelly”). I really wanted to explore the idea of performance anxiety as it affected me as a performer – as I have got older I was finding that I was getting more nervous about performing rather than less (!?!), and I wanted to try to understand and express this. I was also interested in how this anxiety existed away from formal “performance” situations, within the experiences of our day-to-day lives. In addition, I wanted the extra challenge of working in-the-round and within a cabaret setting, playing around with the usual perceptions of dance formats in theatre.

I wanted to give the piece a chance to live and grow again, and to show just how relevant the questions that it poses still are. For example – “If we’ve never had it so good, why do we feel so bad?”…..Why, in one of the most advanced, peaceful, wealthy and free nations on the planet do we still have such an over-riding sense of anxiety, fear and dissatisfaction?

Tell us about your experience at WTF. Why is it such an important event for Brisbane?

WTF was a fantastic experience, especially as it was the inaugural one. I loved being able to showcase my work within an international context, and to challenge what constitutes “theatre” through the use of dance as the main form within the work. It was also fantastic to represent local arts practice and arts workers within the event.

Can you describe performance anxiety in terms of what you’ve experienced in the past as a performer? Does it get better?

It seems to get harder or more stressful, at least in some ways. I think as you age you do get more confident in your own abilities, but you also have a heightened sense of exactly what is at risk. You are more aware of what can go wrong, and you also have a greater expectation placed on you because of past achievements.

So are there any tricks or insider secrets to dealing with performance anxiety? What works for you?

Breathe. Breathe. Breathe. And remember that there are worse things that could happen. Plus, keep it in perspective. It ain’t world peace….

It’s a 90-minute show, combining dance, movement, physical imagery, voice and sound. How do you prepare for each performance and what do you do to stay “performance fit”?

I prepare by immersing myself in the world of the piece, letting myself get lost in the words, movements and characters of the work. In a broader sense, I try to stay as physically active as I can – I rehearse a lot, teach a lot, and ride a bike everywhere. It saves me money, keeps me performance fit and gives me much-needed meditation space.

The Australian has you pinned as “One of Australia’s most commanding actor-dancers.” What do you think it is that makes a performer “commanding”? Is it an innate ability or can less experienced artists work to develop this aspect of the craft?

I think staying true to your own voice and aesthetic, being open to experiences both within performance situations and in life in general, and being prepared to risk, learn and grow. Never stop!

I think that I’ve been helped by my size in terms of this sense of presence (tall often equals “commanding”!), but I think that it is also because I am prepared to be vulnerable and honest in the way I express myself through that body.

It seems everyone is using crowd funding to get their projects up on their feet, with varying degrees of success. You’re using the funds raised to pay the artists involved, rather than to settle accounts with suppliers of your props and costumes. Can you tell us about your experience using pozible.com and how much do you think your use of social media informs its use?

I’m a pozible virgin, so I’m diving into this one full on but innocent! I’ll have to wait and see how it goes…..My one comment here is that I’m aware that many of the people who contribute to pozible campaigns are artists themselves – I’d love to know how better to get these campaigns out to sectors of the community who can actually afford to donate!

Brisbane Powerhouse have been really generous in the support that they have given. I think that they acknowledge the strength of the work and the strong connection that it has with the venue. And they also respect the long-term connection that I have with them.

Do you have any advice for artists seeking similar levels of support from established venues or companies?

Make good work.

Allow that work to be seen and experienced by people from a wide variety of networks, make connections, start and continue conversations, and get yourself “out there”.

But most importantly

MAKE. GOOD. WORK.

How do you usually promote a show?

I’m happy to do anything that will get word out about a show. I talk, I write, I discuss, I contribute.

What do you want us to take away with us?

A unique experience, a sense of wonder and questioning, and a desire to better understand ourselves and each other.

What are your hopes for the future of the arts industry in Queensland and Australia? (I use the term “industry” loosely because some of us still believe we should be making money from the art we create and others are happy to keep creating, regardless of the commercial success of a creative product/process). What is most helpful for the future of the creative and performing arts in this state?

I think it all comes back to us (as artists) making good work, and with us being surrounded by institutions, organisations and mechanisms that support us in that task. I hope that this situation continues to improve in Queensland and Australia and that artists remember to keep this goal in mind, and not be too distracted by the financial and promotional aspects of the sector.

I want to be around for a long time to come, so I want a sector that enables and supports longevity.

And I don’t want it to be an industry. I want it to be a culture, full of intriguing and inspiring artists with rich arts practices, and full to the brim with creativity.

Let your curiosity guide you to 지하 Underground, a pop-up Korean speakeasy that has taken root in a forgotten corner of Brisbane.

Prepare to drink the night away with the venue’s eccentric proprietor, as a tale of love transcending culture, language and gender unfolds to rhythms created by his staff, a ragtag crew of musicians.

Every hour is happy hour as you allow yourself to indulge in a mix of live music and magical storytelling amidst a transitory world written by Jeremy Neideck and Nathan Stoneham and presented by Motherboard Productions.

Post-performance, the space transforms into a fully functioning bar for the public with a variety of special guests.

Underground. Motherboard Productions. Image by Matty Gharakhanian.

Upon entering through black curtains, you feel like you’ve entered into another world. A world you’ve never been before. You’re given a hearty greeting as you enter the room. Various pictures, ornaments, mismatching chairs and even more mismatching colours fill your field of vision. The stage is a modestly low-set wooden crate with a quaint, vintage feel to the place. Blow-up palm trees are strewn about by the speakers and small, wooden fish trinkets and other crafted sea critters dangle from the fishnet-laden ceiling. The style is eclectic and colourful and you start to get a feel for what the show will be like. The vibe is set for the night.

Underground is a tale of love, regardless of culture, language or gender. This Korean and English show – directed and written by Jeremy Neideck and co-written by Nathan Stoneham – incorporates live music, dance and storytelling to take you on a glorious adventure with the Coconut Princess through love and discovery.

Before the show even begins, there is pre-show entertainment with songs and drinks to keep the spirits of the room high. To get everyone interested, the performers ask for audience participation and before you know it, the energy in the room is electric. Your heart is racing and everyone’s clapping along and cheering. The show itself starts off much like a cheesy games show. I was half expecting to see Larry Emdur from The Price Is Right to pop out at any moment.

But don’t let this fool you. There is more to this show than first meets the eye.

Underground is an absolute riot. From the get go, there isn’t a single moment of rest from the enthusiastic and honest performances. It’s the kind of show that will have you laughing almost non-stop while still managing to maintain story. There were highly inventive uses of props to create each scene and setting and with just the tiniest touch or addition to the stage, we are taken to the next part of the production.

The songs are, for lack of a better word, outstanding. These live-performed songs add to the storyline as the lyrics and music weave in and out of the show.

After briefly chatting to the producer, Dave Sleswick of Motherboard Productions, I found out the music was original and the finale musical number – possibly the best of the show – was something they had been particularly working on for quite some time. And it shows. The whole production is quite evidently a labour of love and the music worthy of its own album, which will be made available soon, thanks to the support for the project, raised via pozible.com

Because of the energy and enthusiasm of the performers (Tak Hoyoung, Park Younghee, Lee Chunnam, Thom Browning, Jeremy Neideck, Nathan Stoneham and Abe Mitchell) you can’t help but smile the whole time. You also soon discover that the entire room is their stage as they sing, dance and act their way through the audience. Various parts of the performance are set up throughout the room so you can’t help but feel immersed and in the thick of the action for much of the show.

Underground is running throughout Brisbane Festival and is not a production to be missed. If you enjoy a good laugh and a good time, go see it immediately.

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Nathan Stoneham & Younghee Park. Image by Gerwyn Davies.

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